Mac Pro (Late 2013) GPU Issues

[ArKay99]

This is to address the OP. setup in my sig.

I've had this problem since day one...the graphics freeze, usually but not always, preceded by a slight audio glitch if it's playing...then the entire machine becomes unresponsive as the playback continues into the sunset. If I wait for a minute or two and start clicking the keyboard and moving the mouse I'll get the beach ball...sometimes the cursor just disappears and then comes back...the only way out is a hard reset.

What seems to help in my case is to shut it down after the reset boot and move the TB connectors around, in/out a few times. IF I don't do that, the freeze is guaranteed to happen several more times that day. I can't say for sure this a result of me 'cleaning' the conns, but as a retired field service engineer, 99% of the time there was a failure it had to do with connectors. I hope this issue becomes defined because I'm not going to shell out another $6k on a new MP for a while.

Following...

[strangepumpkin]

Originally Posted by ArKay99

This is to address the OP. setup in my sig.

I've had this problem since day one...the graphics freeze, usually but not always, preceded by a slight audio glitch if it's playing...then the entire machine becomes unresponsive as the playback continues into the sunset. If I wait for a minute or two and start clicking the keyboard and moving the mouse I'll get the beach ball...sometimes the cursor just disappears and then comes back...the only way out is a hard reset.

What seems to help in my case is to shut it down after the reset boot and move the TB connectors around, in/out a few times. IF I don't do that, the freeze is guaranteed to happen several more times that day. I can't say for sure this a result of me 'cleaning' the conns, but as a retired field service engineer, 99% of the time there was a failure it had to do with connectors. I hope this issue becomes defined because I'm not going to shell out another $6k on a new MP for a while.

Following...

Once I reboot, I rarely get another freeze the same day, but like yourself, I've tried moving cables around in different configurations to see if there's any improvement. I sort of wish the issue was THAT predictable, certainly would have helped me convince Apple there was a problem. But alas.

Thanks for the input though, it's nice to know I'm not the only one suffering.

[gio1009]

So my nMP has been with Apple since June 07 and they have now upgraded graphics card a and b and they said that they were looking at the risers as well because apparently, they are getting more "failures" (per their words) than i was able to replicate. All i know is that Apple does NOT have a fix and anyone's MP that has been "fixed" is just a case of luck and probably a ticking time bomb. I'm almost rooting for them to make the problems worse so that perhaps i could get a new MP...even if the chances of that machine having the same problem are pretty high. I just want to my computer with no problems...that's it...not looking for a handout or a free upgrade...just get me a computer that works and allows me to complete my LPX projects without any issues.

[ArKay99]

Originally Posted by strangepumpkin

Once I reboot, I rarely get another freeze the same day, but like yourself, I've tried moving cables around in different configurations to see if there's any improvement. I sort of wish the issue was THAT predictable, certainly would have helped me convince Apple there was a problem. But alas.

Thanks for the input though, it's nice to know I'm not the only one suffering.

I wasn't offering moving the cables around as a solution. I did say, 'seems'. I have a feeling it has something to do with Thunderbolt though, which has everything, including graphics running through it, which means the graphics cards, and the 'riser' have to have some connection through. For me, I'm kinda skeptical to put all those signals through a few wires in a flimsy cable at those frequencies.

A quick Google on "Thunderbolt unreliable" brings a up a number of hits, a lot of them dealing with TB cables, etc. A lot of the solved issues involved changing cables to better ones...not sure how one determines a better TB cable, and I'm uncomfortable laying out $100 several times on a hunch...

As I said, this is important to me, so I'm following...

[strangepumpkin]

Originally Posted by ArKay99

A quick Google on "Thunderbolt unreliable" brings a up a number of hits, a lot of them dealing with TB cables, etc. A lot of the solved issues involved changing cables to better ones...not sure how one determines a better TB cable, and I'm uncomfortable laying out $100 several times on a hunch...

As I said, this is important to me, so I'm following...

Yeah, I came across some issues relating to TB ports on the MP. One thing I tried is leaving TB ports 5 & 6 open on my MP as they are on the same bus as the HDMI port. Just to see if that was causing an issue. You'd think that TB cables that were connected to devices that don't use graphics would not draw from the GPU, but who knows. I'm trying everything I can think of at this point.

But your post made me realize that I overlooked the fact that my OWC Thunderbolt 2 Dock has an HDMI port on it, so I'm wondering now if that may be playing games with my system.

Lots to try out while I wait for Apple.

[Becharax]

Guys ... I dont want to jinx myself but ever since I am on Sierra 12.4 and didn't update I didn't have this freeze since long long time ...

[strangepumpkin]

** Another Update **
So, I've been getting a new form of crash this week. After coming back from a break, I noticed my display was black. I never let my computer sleep, but I do manually sleep the display when I'm away from the computer. Normally, the screen wakes and I'm presented with the login screen. This time, no login screen. Computer was unresponsive. So, I manually powered it down, and started it up again. This time, there's a log for the crash.

This what happens:
** GPU ASIC Log Start **
Proceeded by lines and lines of numbers and kernels. And repeats over 25 times.

So, I sent this to my Apple rep, and now they're thinking it's the logic board.

Fun fun.

[Becharax]

LOL ! I feel sorry for you mate ... an iMac Pro should be your best bet hopefully

[strangepumpkin]

Originally Posted by DJ Bechara

LOL ! I feel sorry for you mate ... an iMac Pro should be your best bet hopefully

I hear ya! The iMac Pro looks wicked, but it's way out of my budget starting at $4999 US. Having to wait until December 2017 to see one, doesn't help either. My main concern is the fan system, and how loud it will be. If my mac pro would just work, it's all the computer I need at the moment.

[Becharax]

I am always concerned about new products ... they might have a defect or something just like what happened with the Mac Pro ...